Looking to the future
by Moongarm
Summary: So this is what it means to be a family. I used to dread the future, now I welcome it with open arms. I look forward to what we will accomplish, together. Team RWBY, a little Bumblebee if you look closely. Tribute to Monty Oum.


**Author's Note: First fic written in years, given recent events I was compelled to do something, so here we go. Further A/N at the end. **

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_Snap_. The silence was shattered by the sound of yet another pencil splintering under the furious writing of the blonde brute, followed by a string of whispered curses. Ignoring the now broken pencil on the desk, she fumbled through her bag for a replacement. "Where are you, stupid pencils not being where I look for them, damnit…."

A sharp amber gaze tracked the blonde's movements from the comfort of her bed a few feet away, feline ears twitching in curiosity. Making another tick in her notebook, _hmm, she is up to nine, that is a new record_. Chuckling quietly to herself, she resumed her study of dust application, momentarily distracted by the antics of her exuberant partner.

Blake learned long ago to let loose, especially within their dorm room. She recalled back to the first few nights with her new team, and how anxious she had been around each of them, especially whenever Yang sat down to tackle work for history class. Of course it didn't help that Professor Oobleck took a particular liking to Yang after her numerous tardies. That fondness for the blonde was displayed in the heap of additional work he gave to her as make up. To her credit, Yang did straighten up very quickly. However, that additional work often resulted in late nights, which inevitably led to a couple instances of her semblance triggering in the room. The first time, Blake almost bolted from the room, her instincts from the White Fang still engrained within her. In hindsight, Blake didn't need to fear Yang, by now she had seen and been on the receiving end of the brawler's delicate touch and caring personality numerous times.

She found herself once again distracted from her studies, only this time it was to admire her partner. Yang…is an enigma. Blake, through her training, had become incredibly good at reading people, often knowing their intentions before they even did. However, her time spent within team RWBY had, on more than one occasion, caught her off guard. Believing that Yang was merely a fun-loving party girl, she surprised her the first time Ruby was injured in a training accident. It wasn't anything major, her aura absorbed most of the damage, but seeing Yang's tear-streaked face over a simple scratch to her sister was a sobering picture. Combined with the talk they had when Blake was so hell-bent on finding Torchwick, and Blake realized that there was much more to the brawler than previously thought.

_Snap. _"DAMNIT!" Blake was startled from her reverie from the sounds of yet another pencil snapping, followed by the seething breathes of an enraged Yang. Realizing the situation has finally reached the boiling point; Blake closed her books, and slowly walked over to her partner's raging form.

Seated at the desk with her back to the room, the blonde didn't hear Blake approach, and was startled when she felt two cool hands grip both of her shoulders, and a soothing voice in her ear, "Yang, I think that's enough studying for now." She was about to argue with her partner before she felt the hands dig into the muscles of her neck and shoulders. The retort on her tongue vanished, replaced by a moan. Her head rolled back to briefly glance at a mischievous amber gaze before giving in and tipping forward to land on the desk with a dull thud.

Laughing softly, Blake shook her head at her partner and decided to indulge her, and continued the massage for a few more minutes. The previously built tension in the room dissipating until calm settled within the room, the only sound being the moans and groans of the brawler. She was interrupted by a chuckle rising from her subject, "what's so funny?"

Breaking into breathy laughter, Yang replied, "I had no idea you could give massages like this." Turning her head to the side so she could glance at her raven-haired partner, she beamed "why did you never tell me you had this exceptional talent?"

The blinding smile she was now faced with, along with the compliment caused a rosy blush to adorn the normally stoic Blake's cheeks. "I never had a reason to give you one, nor did you ask." Removing her hands from the strong shoulders, she prepared for the witty quip to spew from Yang's mouth.

A look of mischief passed the blonde's face before an honest smile graced her features, "I know." Sitting up straight, she partially turned so she could face Blake, "thanks partner, I really needed that."

"I know you did," Blake replied with a smirk. "Honestly I didn't want to replace another desk after what you did last time."

"Hey!" Yang shouted, as she stood up, nearly knocking the chair over, "it's not my fault the wood was so flammable."

Blake stared at her partner for a beat, then burst into uncontrollable laughter. _Gods she can be so infuriating at times, but I'm glad we are partners._

"That isn't funny, I had to buy this one out of pocket-", Yang's rebuttal was cut off by the increased laughter of Blake, and the door opening, revealing the last two members of team RWBY. "Oh hey guys! How did sparring go?"

The white-themed heiress stood in the door, "fine, what did you do to your partner?"

That question was drowned out by the more exuberant of the two, "fine? FINE? Weiss! We developed some new tag team moves, combining your dust with my Rose! Ohhhh I can't wait to use these in action, oh I know! Yang, Blake we need to have a team sparring match as soon as possible, or we could maybe ask JNPR if-", her rambling was silenced by the immaculate finger now laid across her lips.

"Please Ruby, we had a long day, I want to eat dinner before listening to any more of your blabbering," Weiss muttered.

"Oh, okay! You guys ready?" The bouncy redhead asked excitedly.

"Yeah sis, let's get moving before the line gets too long, I haven't eaten all day!" Yang walked to the beds, and held out her hand for Blake to take, "you ready to go partner?"

Smiling amber gaze met warm lilac as she grabbed the brawler's hand, "always."

As the four walked down the halls of Beacon that night, Blake watched her team interact with each other. Ruby and Yang and their incredible antics with each other, their never-ending energy, Weiss and her softened demeanor, although she is getting slightly better at telling jokes than before. All the while Blake couldn't keep the grin off of her face, A warmth spread through her body, _so this is what it means to be a family. I used to dread the future, now I welcome it with open arms. I look forward to what we will accomplish, together._

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**Author's Note: Given the recent events, I was compelled to start writing again. This might appear choppy, it was written, edited, and posted in one night. I will go through and edit it further, but I wanted to have something to post to honor him. My goal here wasn't a direct tribute per se, it was moreso to look to the future. We are all grieving in our own way, I still am, but I also believe that we should cherish this wonderful world he built, and as he repeatedly said, Keep Moving Forward. We love you Monty, thanks for all that you gave us, Rest In Peace.  
**


End file.
